Higher aspirations?
More money?
New challenges?
Wright is going to do what he wants.
Higher aspirations?
He's already won TWO titles at Villanova, so he knows it can be done. What's so special about winning a title at UCLA, compared to Nova? There isn't, the only thing is that at Nova, he's established, where at UCLA, they are still blowing Wooden and every coach that comes along has to compete with that. It's a fool's errand to live in that shadow.
More Money?
Is it more money? HIs salary is doubled, but most of that money is eaten up by cost of living and taxes. Living in California isn't all that it is cracked up to be, and Wright may not be about that lifestyle. He's an east coast guy, maybe a middling pay raise isn't enough. Odds are Villanova made up a significant part of the difference.
New Challenges?
If you have proven that you can win and win big somewhere, what's the challenge of moving on in the same division? Trying to rebuild UCLA may not be all that exciting to Wright. Wright isn't limited in regards to winning titles at Nova, he's won two of them. It's not like Wright is still at Hofstra, which is limited by resources in regards to winning titles. This isn't the 80s, where you couldn't really win a title outside of 8-12 schools.
People are looking at this like it's 1976 and UCLA still matters. They don't. They are a **** poor managed athletic department that is still trying to sell people on "Hey, Wooden coached here" . No one gives a ****. If you were born after 1990, you know UCLA as a program that has been an also ran, with some occasional big runs. They aren't UNC, Duke or Kentucky. I don't blame Wright for staying at Nova, he is already a legend there, and has passed Rollie. Some guys want to carve their own path, instead of merely being a hired gun.